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company, except a few. As for himself he fought with great bravery; and when he had received so many wounds, that he was unable to bear up, or to oppose any longer, and yet was not able to kill himself; he bade his armourbearer draw his sword, and run him through, before the enemy should take him alive. But his armour-bearer not daring to kill his master, he drew his own sword, and placing himself over against its point, he threw himself upon it; and when he could neither run it through him, nor, by leaning against it, make the sword pass through him; he turned round, and asked a certain young man that stood by, who he was? and when he understood that he was an Amalekite, he desired him to force the sword through him; because he was not able to do it with his own hands, and thereby to procure him such a death as he desired. This the young man did accordingly; and he took the golden bracelet that was on Saul's arm, and his royal crown that was on his head, and ran away. And when Saul's armour-bearer saw that he was slain, he killed himself. Nor did any of the king's guards escape; but they all fell upon the mountain Gilboa. But when those Hebrews that dwelt in the valley, beyond Jordan, and those who had their cities in the plain, heard that Saul and his sons were fallen, and that the multitude about them were destroyed; they left their own cities, and fled to such as were best fortified. And the Philistines finding those cities deserted, came and dwelt in them.

On the next day, when the Philistines came to strip their enemies that were slain; they got the bodies of Saul, and of his sons, and stripped them, and cut off their heads. And they sent messengers all about their country, to acquaint them that their enemies were fallen. And they dedicated their armour in the temple of Astarte; but hung their bodies on crosses, at the walls of the city of Bethshan; which is now called Scythopolis. But when the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead heard that they had dismembered the dead bodies of Saul, and of his sons, they deemed it so horrid a thing to overlook this barbarity, and to suffer them to be without funeral rights, that the most courageous and hardy among them; (and indeed that city had in it men that were very stout, both in body and mind,) journeyed all night, and came to Bethshan, and approached

the enemies' wall, and taking down the bodies of Saul, and of his sons, they carried them to Jabesh; while the enemy were neither powerful, nor bold enough to hinder them, because of their great courage. So the people of Jabesh wept all in general, and buried their bodies in the best place in their country, which was named Aroura; and they observed a public mourning for them seven days, with their wives and children; beating their breasts, and lamenting the king and his sons without either tasting drink or meat,* till the evening.

To this end did Saul come, according to the prophecy of Samuel; because he disobeyed the commandments of God,t about the Amalekites, and on the account of his destroying the family of Ahimelech, the high-priest, with Ahimelech himself, and the city of the high-priests. Now Saul, when he had reigned eighteen years, while Samuel was alive, and after his death two, ended his life in this manner.

* This way of speaking in Josephus, of fasting seven days, without meat or drink, is almost like that of St. Paul's, Acts xxvii. 33. "This day is the fourteenth day that ye have tarried, and continued fasting, having taken nothing;" and as the nature of the thing, and the impossibility of strictly fasting so long, require us here to understand both Josephus, and the sacred author of this history, 1 Sam. xxxi 13, from whom he took it, of only fasting till the evening; so must we understand St. Paul, either that this was really the fourteenth day that they had ta ken nothing till the evening, or else that this was the fourteenth day of their tempestuous weather in the Adriatic sea, as verse 27, and that on this fourteenth day alone they had continued fasting, and had taken nothing before the evening. The mention of their long abstinence, verse 21, inclines me to believe the former explication to be the truth, and that the case was then for a fortnight, what it was here for a week, that they kept all those days entirely as fasts till the evening, but not longer. See Judg. xx.26, xxi. 2, 1 Sam. xiv. 24, 2 Sam. i. 12, Antiq. VII. 7. + 1 Chron. x. 13.

From an. 1114 to 1096, B. C.

BOOK VII.

Containing an Interval of Forty Years.

FROM THE DEATH OF SAUL TO THE DEATH OF DAVID,

CHAP. I.

OF DAVID'S CONDUCT ON RECEIVING THE NEWS OF SAUL'S DEATH, AND OF THE CIVIL WAR WHICH ENSUED BETWEEN THE ADHERENTS OF DAVID AND ISHBOSHETH, IN WHICH ASAHEL AND ABNER WERE SLAIN.

THIS battle happened on the same day whereupon David was come back to Ziklag, after he had overcome the Amalekites. Now when he had been already two days at Ziklag, there came to him the man who slew Saul; he had escaped out of the battle which the Israelites had with the Philistines; and had his clothes rent, and ashes upon his head. And when he made his obeisance to David, he inquired of him whence he came? He replied, from the battle' of the Israelites; and informed him, that the result of it was unfortunate; many ten thousands of the Israelites having been cut off, and Saul, together with his sons, slain. He also said, that he could well give him this information, because he was present at the victory gained over the Hebrews; and was with the king when he fled. Nor did he deny that he had himself slain the king, when he was ready to be taken by the enemy, and himself exhorted him to that act; because when he was fallen on his sword his wounds had made him so weak, that he was not able to kill himself. He also produced demonstrations that the king was VOL. I.

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slain; which were the golden bracelets that had been on the king's arms and his crown, which he had taken away from Saul's dead body; and had brought them to him. So David having no longer any room to question the truth of what he said, but seeing most evident marks that Saul was dead, he rent his garment, and continued all that day with his companions in weeping, and lamentation. This grief was augmented by the consideration of Jonathan, the son of Saul, who had been his most faithful friend, and the occasion of his deliverance. He also evinced such great virtue, and such great kindness for Saul, as not only to take his death to heart, though he had been frequently in danger of losing his life by his means, but to punish him that slew him. For when David had said to him, that he was become his own accuser, as the very man who had slain the king; and when he had understood that he was the son of an Amalekite, he commanded him to be slain.* He also committed to writing some lamentations and funeral commendations of Saul and Jonathan; which have continued to my own age.

When David had paid these honours to the king, he left off his mourning, and inquired of God by the prophet,† which of the cities of the tribe of Judah, he would bestow upon him to dwell in? God answered that he bestowed upon him Hebron ; so he left Ziklag, and came to Hebron; and took with him his two wives, and his armed men. Whereupon all the people of the aforementioned tribe came to him and ordained him their king. But when he heard that the inhabitaints of Jabesh Gilead had

2 Sam i. 13, 15.

+ Though David, after Saul's demise, had a right to the kingdom by virtue of God's designation; yet as God had no where declared, at what time he was to make use of this right, he would not enter into possession, nor take the adminis tration of public affairs upon him, without having first consulted him. Patrick's Comment. B.

Hebron was situated in the midst of the tribe of Judah; and as it was a very ancient city, the metropolis of the whole tribe, and the possession of those priestly families who espoused David's interests, it was a very commodious city for him to make the place of his residence at this juncture, as being not insensible, that the determination of the metropolis in his favour would be of great weight to influence the whole tribe. And accordingly we find, that he was soon invested with the sovereignty thereof: For the men of Judah, (saith the text) came, and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah, 2 Sam. ii. 4. The History of the life of King David, vol. 2. B.

|| 2 Sam. ii. 4.

buried Saul and his sons honourably, he sent to them and commended them, and took what they had done kindly, and promised to make them amends for their care of those that were dead; and at the same time he informed them that the tribe of Judah had chosen him for their king.

But as soon as Abuer, the son of Ner, who was general of Saul's army, and a very active and good natured man, knew that the king and Jonathan and his two other sons were fallen in battle, he hastened into the camp; and taking away with him the remaining son of Saul, whose name was Ishbosheth, he passed over to the land beyond Jordan; and ordained him king over the whole multitude, excepting the tribe of Judah;* and made his royal seat in a place called in our own language Mahanaim,† but in the language of the Grecians, The Camps. From whence Abner made haste, with a select body of soldiers, to fight with such of the tribe of Judah as were disposed to it; for he was angry that this tribe had set up David for their king. But Joab, whose father was Suri, and his mother Zeruiah, David's sister, who was general of David's army, met him, according to David's appointment. He had with him his brethren Abishai, and Asahel; and also all David's armed men. Now when he met Abner, at a certain fountain, in the city Gibeon, he prepared to fight. And when Abner said to him, that he had a mind to know whether of them had the more valiant soldiers, it was mutually agreed, that twelve soldiers on each side should fight together. So those that were chosen out by both generals for the fight, came between the two armies; and throwing their lances one against the other, they drew their

* 2 Sam. ii. 9.

This was a place in the tribe of Gad, which had its name from the appearance of an host of angels to Jacob, as he came with his family and all his substance to Padanaram, Gen. xxxii. 1, and the reasons for Abner's retreating hither, in the beginning of the new king's reign, were, that he might secure the people on that side of Jordan, and especially the gallant inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead, who were great lovers of Saul, and attached to his family; that he might prevent the Philistines from falling upon the king, whom he had under his protection, in the infancy of his reign; and chiefly, that he might be at a great distance from David, have the new king more absolutely under his command, and a better opportunity of raising recruits among the people, not only brave and courageous, but very well affected to the cause which he had espoused. Calmet's Commentary, and Pool's Annotations. B.

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